Can someone please tell me if I am a special case?

My PT tells me that I should have better range of motion when I put my hand behind my back. My surgery was 1.11.08, and I can barely touch my back belt loop. Twice a week, I am subjected to the tourture of having that arm wrenched up behind my back to the point it brings tears to my eyes, and I come up off of the table. I am considering not going back to PT just because I think it's way more painful than it needs to be.

I wake up almost every night with pain, and most of the time, Aleve or Advil does not even come close to dulling it. I have no Darvocet left, and I don't think the Dr. would renew it. It'sd not a very strong dose, but it does take the edge off.

Is the PT doing too much to try and stretch this out or is this something you guys have found comes back after time? I'm ready to kick her in the teeth. I would punch her, but my shoulder hurts too much.

I'm looking to you guys since you are further along post-op than me.

I play mens adult baseball, and am wondering if I should sit out this season, as it does not appear to be going well.

I'll never do this surgery again!

Catch, I can feel the desperation of your post. I've been there, I believe most of us have been in a similar situation. It will get better. Keep at it, keep careful stretching.

Regarding pain meds, talk to your surgeon. It is his duty, his responsibility to keep your pain in check. Remind him/her of that. They get stingy with narcs, without realizing that people are experiencing a great deal of pain after shoulder surgery. They should know better. You can actually contact your states medical examiners board and ask them for advice with pain meds, if your surgeon refuses to prescribe more to control your pain.

And please remember, you are still relatively fresh postop and it will get better. My pain decreased dramatically after 5 months. Keep at it.

chykcha:

Thanks for the vote of confidence. I am glad I found this post, as I was thinking that this was not going well at all. Turns out, I maybe somewhat on track.

I go back to my ortho on the 21st, and wil ask him about pain meds. Especially at night. I hate taking the stuff, but it does help. The OTC stuff just does not cut it. I considered myself to have a high tolerance for pain, but when it wakes you up from a dead sleep and I'm not even laying on that side, it concerned me.

I have PT again tomorrow and will talk about the extremely painful stretching. I think it's doing more harm than good. Maybe we could ease off a little.

Hi Catch,

I experienced the same pain you are talking about during PT. I also had the pain at night for quite a while. Please do ask your doctor about more pain meds. I had to take them at night for about 4 months. I can remember going for my 12th week check up and telling the doctor PT hurts so much I don't want to go back. All I can say is hang in there. It will get better eventually but it takes time. When you can start strenthening your arm the pain should get better.

Take Care,
Karen

I'm 7 months post-surgery for a Slap IV, w/ 3 anchors. Still experiencing very significant pain and limited movement, plus increased grinding and clicking in and out. Doc is sending me for a shoulder arthrogram MRI. He feels I should be all better by now, but I'm definitely not. I couldn't have avoided surgery due to the extensive nature of the injury, but so far, surgery hasn't solved the problem. Hopefully the tests will give a clearer picture of what is still wrong.

Did P/T for 4.5 months, then doc called it off, saying it was causing the joint to become more inflamed and was aggravating the pain. Am back on Arthrotek, following a Medrol Dose Pack to try to reduce inflammation. May have done that, but pain increased significantly after that was concluded.

So I had my SLAP tear surgery in January. I don't think I had ever experienced the kind of pain I felt before the surgey. I was also not really told the kind of pain I would have after surgery. I definitely had to have the surgery though. Physical therapy would not have worked for me.I had physical therapy about 3 weeks after surgery. Surgery was on Jan 7th. Day I will never forget. I finished therapy at the end of May. I am doing really well although I started personal training sessions and I have since heard a sound (like a rusty hinge)when I bend my arm behind my head. I have recently called doc. but have no idea what it is.Hopefully nothing bad. I was hoping to return to matial arts in August. So I guess I am in the range of 60% better. Not 100% yet. Not sure I will ever be.